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Fengtian Government
Officially "The Fengtian Government of the Republic of China", and the only "Republic" that holds actual territory in mainland China, the Fengtian Government is essentially a mirror of the Guangzhou military government established by Sun Yat-Sen in the early 1920's, from which it claims direct descent. Zhang Zuolin stands as the acting Grand Marshal, despite by most accounts being a monarchist by personal politics, and does not answer to the Qing due to his rivalry with Wu Peifu and the Zhili Clique. Japan's influence in Manchuria has steadily increased since the end of the civil wars in 1928, to the chagrin of Zhang, but they are needed due to the otherwise insurmountable disparity in power between Wu's Zhili in the Qing Empire and its German aid. The Assembly is made up of the remnants of the Beiyang assembly that either were loyal to Zhang personally and fled to Manchuria after Wu took Beijing at the beginning of the 3rd Zhili-Fengtian War, as well as republicans who were both unwilling to compromise with the Qing, unaffiliated with either the federalists or KMT, and were able to make the journey north. History Starting the century as a poor frontier province beset by lawlessnes, Fengtian (also referred to as simply "Manchuria") came under the jurisdiction of the Warlord Zhang Zuolin following the Xinhai Revolution in 1911. Through careful planning, competent governance, and some luck, the Fengtian Clique became one of the most powerful collections of Warlords in China, and made an effort to seize Beijing and control the weak Beiyang Government. Thanks to the Kuomintang Northern Expedition and the German intervention against it in 1926, this effort never bore fruit, and only Japanese involvement saved Zhang and his province from incorporation into the restored Qing Empire. Zhang then raised the banner of his new government. Today, Fengtian has the difficult task of balancing Japanese aid, needed to defeat the Zhili dominated Qing Empire, with the creeping economic and political influence it bears. There are also the Mongolians to contend with, as inevitable competition over the jointly administered Chinese Eastern Railway is likely to end in some form of confrontation. Due to their conflicting claims to legitimacy, the Fengtian and Qing governments have been waging an intermittent propaganda war since 1928, often resumed or inflamed by public (or merely perceived) instances of Japanese or German exploitation. The resulting allegations, often centered around cooperation with foreign powers at the expense of the Chinese people, periodically threaten to bring the two countries and potentially their backers into a state of war. However, due to the persistent and often exaggerated nature of these threats from both sides, and their consistent failure to develop far beyond words, the wider international community has ceased to take them particularly seriously. If Zhang can somehow manage to take Beijing and defeat the restored Qing, he then faces the difficult task of reuniting China beneath his leadership, and shaking off the chains of Japanese imperialism. Politics The Fengtian Government is structurally almost identical to Sun-Yat Sen's former military government, from which it inherits most of its symbolism and claims to legitimacy. While making a pretense to democracy in the form of a legislative assembly, power in the "Republic" is primarily brokered by former Communications Clique oligarchs, former warlord generals, and of course the Grand Marshal himself. The Empire of Japan, often through its powerful Dalian based South Manchuria Railway Company (colloquially "Mantetsu"), exerts increasing political influence, privately dividing many in the Republic between loose "Pro-Japan" and "Pro-Zhang" factions. Military By the mid-1920s, Zhang's Fengtian Army boasted one of the best equipped and organized forces in China, fielding an impressive panoply of Weltkrieg era surplus, its very own arsenal in Mukden, and generous aid from Japan in varying forms. Points of particular pride were two entire divisions of tanks, rare among the warlords, and China's only organized air-force including both fighters and bombers. By 1928, the Fengtian Army was utterly decimated as a consequence of intense fighting against more modern German equipment and defections by important generals, and the ensuing eight years have seen slow but steady rearmament and reorganization in-pace with the recovering economy. Japanese aid continues to flow, but at more evident cost than before. Many of Fengtian's Japanese-trained divisions are now also captained by Japanese officers, and military "advisors" to higher levels of command are not an uncommon sight in the capital. Thanks to a series of treaties signed after the intervention, Japanese garrisons are spread across the country, particularly near major ports and cities. Army The Fengtian Army, officially the Army of the Republic, is an impressive sight by most Chinese standards, though pales in comparison to most foreign forces. The majority of its weapons and vehicles are outdated, with the exception of its standard issue rifle provided by the Japanese, and organization below the division level is a patchy affair due to limited communications equipment. The Army's greatest deficiency is in morale, partially as a consequence of foreign-trained and even outright Japanese officers widespread throughout the ranks. While Zhang's troops are as well trained as any among the Qing, the shortage of indigenous officers is a constant reminder to the men that they are ultimately fighting for a foreign power. Another uncommon dynamic in the Fengtian Army is the presence of strong ties of personal loyalty between troops and generals, as well as similar ties between those generals and the Grand Marshal. Although Zhang carried out a Japanese-backed campaign of "pacification and centralization" after the conclusion of the civil war, intended to eliminate competition and endemic banditry, it was actually used as an opportunity to incorporate these various forces into the army to replace losses. As a result, the Army's leadership structure is virtually feudal, and most of these generals and troops owe their personal loyalty to Zhang, instead of any abstract concept of nation or state. While these conditions are the case for most of the army, the Grand Marshal himself is known to be a formidable commander, and the "Mukden Tiger" maintains a personal guard of two divisions equipped and trained to foreign standards. Navy The Fengtian Navy, officially The Navy of the Republic, consists of an aging collection of cruisers and destroyers accompanied by four submarines. No serious effort has gone into updating or even sufficiently organizing the navy, which exists mostly as a coastal and river patrol force, and it will rely entirely upon Japanese assistance in the event of war with the Qing. This pitiful state of affairs is attested by the fact that the crew of one Destroyer went so far as to sell their ship's armament, which went unnoticed by command for weeks. Airforce The Fengtian Flying Corps, officially The China Flying Corps, was once the pride and joy of the Grand Marshal's son, Zhang Xueliang, who used his passion for aviation to train its first pilots. The Flying Corps performed well during the Civil Wars, and lost air superiority over the Zhili only upon the arrival of modern German-piloted planes. Since then, the Flying corps has grown, though its planes remain over a decade behind the European standard. Foreign Relations The Fengtian Government of the Republic of China, *is a quietly resentful puppet of Japan. *has friendly relations with Japan and Transamur. *maintains an intense rivalry with the Qing Empire, and dislikes the Ma Clique, Yunnan, AOG, Shanqing Tianguo, and Russia. Economy At the start of the 20th century, Manchuria was a poorly managed frontier province, fraught by lawlessness and banditry. With the rule of Zhang, however, came rapid reforms through his finance minister Wang Yongjiang. Wang backed his currency, originally no different from those printed by other warlords, with silver, generating confidence and eventually gaining value against the Japanese Yen. Extensive tax reform solved outstanding debts, and by the early 1920s the economy was bolstered by immigrants fleeing instability throughout the rest of China. The presence of Mantetsu, the South Manchurian Railway Company, permitted Japan to invest heavily and confidently throughout Manchuria, building railways, mines, and even schools and hospitals across their extensive land granted via treaty. This period of prosperity, and even relative peace, came to an end when Zhang took his forces headlong into the Civil Wars raging to the south, and defeats at the hands of his enemies came at a cost to the Manchurian economy. The fighting eventually brought the Fengtian economy to the brink of collapse, and while this was by no means as bad as it could have been, the untimely death of Minister Wang made prospects of rapid recovery unrealistic. The cornerstones of Fengtian's economy are steel, coal, and soybeans, the last of which serves as a source of both food for export and oil for industrial purposes. Given the relative resource scarcity in the Japanese Home Islands, Manchurian resources are crucial to Japanese industry, and thanks to Mantetsu's efficiently run railroads, these rapidly make their way south to Dalian, and from there to the rest of the Empire. In 1936, Fengtian boasts a stronger economy than most other Chinese factions, with the exception of the Qing Empire, which has German backing. A matter of particular concern is the increasingly pervasive presence of Mantetsu, which is no longer limited to treaty zones, and competes with government oligarchs for control of utilities and transportation, while maintaining a near monopoly on manufacturing and farm ownership. The fundamental question is whether Zhang and the Republic can eventually operate without the presence of this beneficial but controlling corporation, as well as widespread Japanese investment with its many strings attached. Culture Culture in Fengtian is extremely diverse as a consequence of its many recognized ethnic groups which include Han Chinese, Manchu, Koreans, Japanese, and Russians. While at times standing true to the spirit of the "Five Races Under One Union" motto, socio-economic stratification by race is clearly visible if intensely complex, with Manchus clearly at the bottom, but Han Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Russian situations varying by circumstance. Han Chinese Han Chinese make up the vast majority of the population in Manchuria as well as its government, and while forced to respect Japanese extraterritoriality, this rarely translates into deference or even amity. As the majority, Han can be found at virtually every level of society, from the poorest beggar to the Grand Marshal himself. They regularly compete with Japanese in finance and trade, but less commonly in technical areas like engineering, with most working in industry, mining, or the fields. Han Chinese tend to regard all other groups as intruders, excluding Manchu who are truly native to the area. All the same, thanks to centuries of Qing rule, they have little respect for these few Manchu who didn't flee to Puyi's regime, and many see them as little better than spies or saboteurs. Those intellectuals and artists who didn't flee to the Legation Cities or AOG made their way to Fengtian, and the capital hosts a small but active community, albeit one limited by the risk of appearing to foster dissent. Because of active efforts by the Japanese to promote their own culture and customs in Manchuria, the Chinese government tolerates these individuals, and sometimes goes so far as to commission patriotic art and music. Japanese Japanese, thanks to treaties granting extraterritoriality and strong influence over the Republic, are in most respects the most powerful group in Manchuria. Although generally barred from office, Japanese of any considerable social standing are more or less free to operate without constraint, and tend exploit their position as much as possible. As the primary conduit through which modern technology reached Manchuria, Japanese tend to occupy roles as architects, engineers, and businessmen, with the majority working for the South Manchuria Railway Company, also known as "Mantetsu". Other Japanese serve in the military as officers or as advisers to the government, as school teachers, or as high-class servants to their more affluent countrymen. A smaller minority of Japanese are landowners and farmers who arrived searching for opportunity, or simply a new life, outside the Home Islands. For all their exploitation, Mantetsu and the Japanese government are careful not to push other groups too far in their drive for control and profits, and sometimes limit Japanese who risk pushing attitudes from resentment into open hostility. Ultimately, Japan sees Manchuria as the key to control of the rest of China, a vital market for exports, and a valuable source of raw materials. Efforts have been made to slowly push Japanese culture and norms onto the people of Fengtian, in the hopes that this will eventually result in a less unfriendly relationship, and the easier realization of long term goals. Koreans Koreans maintain a position above some of society thanks to their Imperial citizenship which grants them legal extraterritoriality, but Koreans are generally looked down upon by Japanese, Han Chinese, and Russians. The largest minority in the country, Koreans tend to be rice farmers and little else, competing for land and profits with indigenous Chinese which often sparks low level conflict between the two groups. While most Chinese look down on Koreans, and though they receive a measure of protection from their citizenship, resentment burns strongest against their colonial overlords. Because most Koreans are skilled rice planters, but Soybeans are a desirable cash crop, Mantetsu has recently begun an effort to educate Koreans in Soy farming, the response to which has been mixed. Russians Russians in Fengtian make up a smaller proportion of the population than only a decade ago, many arriving during the middle stages of the Russian Civil War and leaving with the stabilization of Transamur, though the core community has roots centuries old. Thanks to the superiority the Western Powers enjoyed in the past century, and in many respects still do in 1936, Russians are usually greeted with a mix of deference and resentment. Many Japanese, particularly in recent years, tend to regard them poorly, though many Han Chinese recognize the long presence of Russians in Harbin and some other northern towns. Russians tend to be small land and business owners, often with financial and social ties to Transamur. Manchu Manchu are the original native population in Fengtian, the Manchurian region being named after them, and tend to regard all other groups as invaders. Some, however, have made concerted efforts to assimilate, and effectively act as part of the Han population. Most Manchu, however, are those who refused to flee to the Qing Empire because of ties to land, family, or fear of direct capture and persecution by the government. Manchu are often assumed to be nomadic, but this isn't strictly speaking the case, and most are simply hunters and farmers concentrated in communities outside major cities. This misconception seems to arise from their long tradition of, and excellence in, the arts of riding and archery. The Fengtian Army has been known to conscript Manchu at a young age to form cavalry regiments, sometimes inflaming pre-existing animosity. See also *Empire of Japan *Qing Empire *Mongolia *Russia Category:Countries